Something I hear all the time is “I wish I could paint”. Well first of all let me tell you a little secret that will help you if you really want to paint. Here’s the secret…

Anyone can paint!

That’s right. You, me, that weird guy in the cubicle next to you, your grandma, anyone.

Now maybe that’s hard to believe, but I guarantee you it’s absolutely the truth. Not only can anyone paint, but anyone can learn to paint well. Talent is a myth.

Now that we’ve cleared that up… if you’d like to start painting I have a few recommendations for you to help you get started.

1. Get good paints!

One of the most frustrating things that you can encounter as a painter is poor paint quality. Get cheap brushes and canvases starting out, but don’t skimp on your paints. Depending on the store you may see paint categorized in different ways. Try to look for a medium quality paint. You want to avoid the most basic grade. A brand I would recommend for starting out is Grumbacher Academy Acrylic. It’s fairly inexpensive and decent quality (just be careful with the caps, I’ve broken a few!). If you want to use a lot of orange or yellow, I do recommend picking those up in a professional grade (I recommend Liquitex heavy body) because cheaper paints will be transparent in those colors. I recommend acrylic paint for beginners because it has a magical property… it dries really quickly! This means that you can easily paint over mistakes. You also only need to mix it with water, cutting down your costs and reducing potential for problems.

2. Learn from others!

Watch tutorials about technique, style, and color theory on Udemy or Youtube! Take a class! Check out some books from your local library! There are so many resources available these days and if you’re motivated you can learn a ton.

3. Draw inspiration from what you see!

In order to develop your own style and storytelling, you have to approach this carefully. The key is to take ideas and make them your own. Take pictures and make them your own. Take colors and make them your own. When you consider what you like about an image, think in terms of themes, textures, and colors to determine what it was that drew you to it. That will help inform your style. Once you have figured out what it is that you really like you can put that all together in a painting that is uniquely you. You might find that you really like Van Gogh, but his colors and subjects don’t speak to you, just his textures. Perhaps you specifically enjoy monochrome or pastels! Maybe you really want to paint animals! You can meld the things that you love into something entirely new and original… like a swirly textured, candy colored, portrait of your dog! And now you have your own art. 🙂

Painting doesn’t have to be intimidating. I know it may seem that way, but with a little time and some basic guidelines you can start creating fun paintings that are your own unique expression. Not only that, but it is incredibly therapeutic and satisfying to play with colors and textures. I hope you’ll give it a try!